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current skincare routine

While I am no beauty expert or well versed in any sense of the beauty industry, one thing that I can ascertain is that I blimmin’ well love my skincare products and regime. Most of my ‘good skin’ is down to good genes and good habits from an early age. My Mum had me on the 5-a-day and lots of water from the earliest age! As a result, I’ve fallen into the habit of eating lots of fruit and veg, and other than on a night out, I only drink water, orange juice with the bits in, Yakult or a sneaky coffee at home.

I receive quite a lot of comments, emails, messages, etc. complimenting me on my skin (thanks guys, you’re too nice to me!) so I thought I’d follow up with a concise post about how I enhance my skin and ‘maintain’ it, I suppose! Also, I apologise in advance that I don’t really have much variety in terms of brands, this is just what I’ve used since the age of about 12, give or take a few products!

Daily Cleanser:
I have two main cleansers that I’d say I use on a daily basis. Depending on how I feel my skin is looking/feeling, I’ll use different ones. The first is my Boots’ Tea Tree and Witch Hazel foaming facewash, which is nice and affordable, and is my go-to when my face feels hot and puffy(?), or when I just feel that I might have a dreaded spot on the way. It is light, refreshing and genuinely works overnight, it retails at £3.99 in Boots in the UK, and is more often than not on offer, I’d really recommend!

I also use Lancome Foaming Gel Eclat, and have been doing so for about two or three years now. I used to use Lancome’s LCM gel cleanser, up until the age of 16, when they discontinued it, and this was hailed as the ‘next best’ product. It can be a little drying, but I work it in the skin with some water and circular motions. It cleanses so well, and leaves my skin feeling lovely and soft!

Exfoliator:
I haven’t found a really good, dedicated exfoliator yet. I quite want to try a St. Ives one, but if you have any recommendations, send them my way! I currently use Laneige Multi-Cleanser two or three times a week after cleansing my face. It’s supposed to be a generic cleanser, but the micro beads are super exfoliating, and I find it’s slightly too harsh on my skin every day, maybe I’m just too careful. Never get Laneige MC in your eyes. It burns like crazy!

Toner:
Of all the toners I have sampled (most counters are more than happy to give you 10ML samples!), I just can’t stop going back to the Boots Botanics rosewater toner. So refreshing, clarifying and perfectly light-scented, although of course it isn’t a perfume, rosewater naturally smells gorgeous. Toner removes any last trace of make-up and dirt, rehydrates the skin and preps for moisturiser.

Moisturiser:
Started using a new moisturiser about a week or two ago after I ran out of my HG one (Lancome Hydrazen Neurocalm Soothing cream) and decided I wanted to switch to a gel formula. I’ve pretty much used Lancome creams since I was 13, and have never had a problem with them, but recently found that it was just sitting on top of my skin instead of moisturising it. The Clinique Dramatically Different range has had mixed reviews in the press, some say it is too heavy, which I found in the lotion, but the gel version, aimed at oily skin, is so perfect for me. I have Normal/Dry skin, so am trying to work out why this is haha, but it just shows that these full sets aren’t always the best option, mixing and matching worked a lot better for me.

Eye Cream:
I only started using eye cream about two years ago, at the age of 18. Many write it off as something for older women but it’s best to start as soon as possible with caring for the delicate skin surrounding your eyes. I use eye cream nightly at the moment and switch between Boots Botanics Organic Moisturising eye cream (£6.12 for 15ML) and the Lancome Hydrazen Neurocalm Eye Contour cream. My favourite is the Lancome of course, but I have no qualms with the Botanics one, and find it works just as well. I’m really interested in trying the Soap & Glory Supereyes Supereyes eye gel soon though! Such a skincare junkie!

… and the rest!
I was recently sent a sample of the new Sudocrem Tube by Hayden. Widely regarded as ‘that nappy rash stuff’, I was quite skeptical of its’ use on me, so had a little Google session to find that it works wonders on scarring, spots, and dry/sensitive skin. My arms suffer from weird, dry patches and I had some discolouration from ezcema from my younger years (haha!) so upon arrival of the sample and on the advice of my Mama, I applied a layer of Sudocrem on my dry patches etc. overnight, and awaited results. A week and a bit later, I have genuinely noticed a different. It hydrates my skin and evens out the colouring, and one of my friends uses it as a facemask hahaha, it’s nothing short of a miracle product to her 😉

Once or twice a week, I also like to use facemasks. Real ones, not nappy rash versions. My favourite is Biore and My Beauty Diary sheetmasks (mine are currently on order and I’ve run out!), which are so refreshing. I like to choose whitening masks, a clear complexion suits me more than a tan. If I’ve visited a Lush store recently, more often than not I’ll have a Catastrophe Cosmetic in the fridge. Their fresh facemasks are made with natural fruits and ingredients, and there is a different one for each skin type. I use CC when my skin feels hot or on the verge of a breakout, and it just calms and soothes my skin so well. I haven’t had a spot in about 10 months and I think I owe it all to this badboy!

I also use a range of bodycare products regularly. There is nothing more relaxing to me than getting in a bath with a coffee (yes, really!) and a book! May as well make the most of your time in there! I open a window to refresh the room as well, it can get so stuffy when products get involved. I love Imperial Leather bathcreams, but turn to Lush bubble bars if I want a lot of bubbles.

Exfoliator:
With the persuasion of all you lovely ladies on Twitter who are rapidly bankrupting me, I picked up Soap & Glory’s ‘The Breakfast Scrub’ a few weeks ago. It smells gorgeous, but can be quite sickly at times. I still can’t decide if it’s worth the £9+ that I paid for it, but there is a cheaper version on ASOS, or so I’ve heard. It is quite a gentle scrub, leaving my skin baby soft and without that greasy touch that I found from other S&G exfoliators.

Moisturiser:
Again, this is something I only introduced to my life about two years ago. I currently have two go-to body moisturisers. The Body Shop’s Cocoa Butter body butter (what a mouthful!) is what I use on the days that I feel my skin is particularly dry. I tend to use this after baths actually, I run super-hot baths which mean my skin needs a little more hydration, and the thick formulation of this is perfect for such purposes.

Twice daily and after showers, Mama and I are using Jergens Naturals Organic Aloe Soothing moisturiser. Rosie at Jergens provided me with this over the weekend, and we decided to trial it for its’ supposed soothing and refreshing qualities as we’ve both been working horrific shifts since Monday. While it is really refreshing and moisturising, I found the cream quite runny, and with a bottle packaging, things got quite messy! Other than this, I’d totally recommend Jergens’ Aloe range. It is cruelty-free, and as with all Jergens’ products, made with plant extracts. Retailing at about £5, it is super affordable, and I’m really interested in trying another of their body moisturisers now. My Mama would also like to add (she’s watching me write this!) that their hand lotions are ‘amazing’, haha.

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I think that just about wraps up my skincare routine post! I never expected it to be so long, and almost gave up halfway, thinking of replacing the words with a simple description of the products, but what use is that to you or me? Huge kudos if you got this far, I hope this has helped some of you, and answered your questions. I like to use a mix of high street and high end products, I just find this is the best routine for me at the moment. Also as a little disclaimer, what works for me might not necessarily work for you, I have normal to dry skin which is also a little sensitive. Two of the above products were sent to me for review but as always, my opinions are honest.

Right ladies, I’m off for a day in London with Jesse! Shall take lots of photos and probably Tweet for you, so excited to spend the day with one of my best friends! What are your skincare routines, ladies? I’d love to read about yours, and if you have any face exfoliator recommendations, please let me know in the comments!